MH4U - The Ace Chefs
by AlterJericho
Summary: The Ace Commander, the Ace Cadet and the Kindred Hunter make dinner. It goes about as well as you'd expect. MH4U oneshot, slight K. Hunter x Ace Commander


MH4U – The Ace Chefs

The incoherent screeching of an angry Felyne filled the air as the hunters of Dundorma crowded around what was left of the Capital C's food cart. It was a few days after the dreaded Kushala Daora fight and although no one had been physically hurt, some buildings and areas were collateral damage in the battle, including the infamous food cart of the Caravan.

'Nyaaa! I have full order today and my cart is gone!' the Felyne Cook wailed, gathering up the few blackened pots and pans that had escaped the carnage. The hunters of Dundorma looked around in panic; the Felyne had the cheapest and most satisfying meals in the city, with the Elder Hall charging exorbitant prices for lesser ingredients. Among them was the Kindred Hunter Elle who was helping the Felyne pick up the remains of the cooking utensils with a glum look on her face; he had fed her nearly every day of her hunting career and now his cutlery magic was ruined.

"Isn't there anything we can do, Cook? The restoration of Dundorma will go over much worse on empty stomachs…" she huffed.

"Hunter… you any good at the cooking, nya?" the Felyne Chef said, looking at her appraisingly.

"Uhh… I'm good at grilling meat… wait, I have a full stack of raw meat back at my caravan!" Elle realized triumphantly.

The Felyne looked at her with a grim face.

"Then get ready to grill meat for next 4 hours."

Elle gulped.

About 30 minutes later, the blackened Grill was fully clean and both Felyne and Hunter were cooking meat with fierce enthusiasm to the cheers of the local hunters. The delicious smell of seasoned meat wafted through the main plaza, hitting the nose of the Ace Commander who had just returned from a difficult mission. Hungry, tired and smelling like slimy Nerscylla blood, the smell of roasted meat was like a Siren's call to the grumpy Commander, who followed his nose to the makeshift food cart.

"Hello Commander, we were jus- ECCHHH!" the Kindred Hunter got a good whiff of the man's armor and recoiled in horror. The Ace's sharp face went pink in embarrassment.

"I'll go change before I eat, shall I? he grumbled somewhat sheepishly, heading towards the Elder Hall.

After a change of armor and some furious hair brushing (how did the slime get into his braid?!) the Ace returned to Dundorma's Plaza, walking over to the now slightly overwhelmed Kindred Hunter who was attempting to grill meat and make potato salad at the same time, with little success judging by the fact that her elbow was in the vegetable dish.

"You look much better! Did the Nerscylla give you much trouble?" she inquired, while turning the grill's handle with her left hand.

"It was alright, I handled it as usual… but you're the one who looks like they need help…" the Ace pointed out, staring at Elle's bandaged hand which had suffered several burns off the grill.

"Ooh, you'd help? That'd be great Commander, thank you!" Elle beamed, mishearing him through the loud sizzles of the grill. The Commander opened his mouth to say otherwise, but looking at her shining face and burnt hand… she looked so relieved. He blushed furiously, realizing there's no way he could say no to her now.

"Y-yes, I'll help" he mumbled, going even pinker at the delighted smile she threw at him.

"Great! I've finished most of the meat, but I'm so behind on the potatoes… if you could just peel them for me, that would be fantastic!" she instructed, winking at him and turning back to the grill.

The Ace Commander stared at the potatoes.

The potatoes stared back at him.

He supposed that now would be a poor time to mention he had absolutely no experience with food preparation and admit the embarrassing fact to one of the hunters he respected most that he had no idea how to do this. As a youth, living in his parent's large estate in an advanced hunting program meant that as soon as he came back from a day of hunting, there would be a meal on the table, a bath drawn and his bed made by his father's maids or butlers. Determined not to make a fool of himself in front of the Kindred Hunter, he gripped the peeling knife in his right hand and a potato in his left.

…

Now what?

He decided to go back to his hunting basics; he stabbed the potato. It crumbled.

He held the top of the potato and slashed up with the knife. He cut his hand.

He drove his knife through the middle of the potato. Nothing happened.

He stood over the potatoes, giving them his fiercest death state, blue eyes boring furiously into the vegetables. He stared at them intently, hoping that they would reveal their hidden secrets.

"HEY COMMANDER!" a loud voice exploded in his left ear, drawing him out of his staring contest with the potatoes. It was the Cadet, looking excitable as always.

"I just got back from my mission! Kechawatcha doing?" he laughed at his own pun.

"I'm… peeling potatoes…" the Ace Commander replied uncertainly.

"Oh man, I LIVED off of potatoes in my apprenticeship days! I'm a pro at peeling, chuck some here!" the Cadet laughed, taking a few potatoes and peeling them with ease. The Commander's mouth dropped open with shock before he collected himself, desperately trying to mimic the Cadet's skillful movements in tandem. Luckily, his talent at picking up things quickly meant that the bowl of vegetables were peeled efficiently and equally by both Aces. Feeling beyond relieved that he hadn't shamed himself in front of the Kindred Hunter and the Cadet, he brought over the finished bowl, quickly hiding the first few mangled attempts behind him.

Goddamn potatoes.

"Ah, thank you Commander! It was very sweet of you to help, we were so overwhelmed" Elle smiled, taking the bowl off his hands. The Commander attempted to smile back, though it looked more like some sort of nervous spasm.

Then, she leaned down and kissed him on the cheek.

Fireworks went off in his brain and butterflies took off in his stomach as he face turned bright red! He started coughing nervously, looking supremely embarrassed. She winked at him again with a roguish grin and he felt slightly lightheaded.

"T-the Cadet helped too…" he coughed.

"Ahhh, but I think you wanted that more than I did!" the Cadet teased from behind him, both of them bursting into laughter at the sight of the normally stoic Ace going pink again.

Goddamn Cadet.

The hunters of Dundorma agreed that the dinner they had that night was one of the best they ever had.

The Kindred Hunter delivered the Commander's plate of food to him personally with a smile.

After 10 minutes of teasing by the Cadet, the Commander wanted to smash his face into the plate.

The potatoes were delicious.


End file.
